PREMIER LEAGUE
When could Haaland break Shearer, Cole’s Premier League goalscoring record?
After his brace against Leicester, Erling Haaland is just three goals away from breaking the Premier League’s single-season scoring record.
Erling Haaland continues to conjure up breathtaking scoring exploits - and is hunting down record after record. The Norwegian scored twice in Manchester City’s 3-1 win over Leicester City on Saturday, a double that took his Premier League total this season to 32 goals.
That saw Haaland equal Liverpool forward Mohamed Salah’s record goal haul in a 38-game Premier League campaign.
Haaland hunting down Cole and Shearer
Now, the 22-year-old not only has his sights set on surpassing Salah’s tally, but is also close to reeling in the record for goals scored in a single season at any point in the Premier League era.
That historic mark is currently shared by Andrew Cole and Alan Shearer, who both hit 34 goals in 42-game Premier League seasons. Cole achieved the feat with Newcastle United in 1993/94, before Shearer netted 34 times for Blackburn Rovers the following year.
Given that City still have eight league games to play this term, it seems unthinkable that Haaland will not go on and break Cole and Shearer’s record. Indeed, the former Borussia Dortmund star looks well placed to utterly destroy it.
Hat-trick to break record against Arsenal?
He could very feasibly become the Premier League’s highest ever single-season scorer in City’s next game, when Pep Guardiola’s men take on title rivals Arsenal in a crunch top-of-the-table clash on 26 April. He’ll need a hat-trick to do it against the Gunners - but, having plundered four league trebles already this season, he’s amply demonstrated that he’s capable of managing that.
However, if he doesn’t get the goals he needs against Arsenal, his next opportunity will come just four days later, when City visit Fulham.
If, against expectations, Haaland hasn’t overtaken the record after going to Craven Cottage, City’s home clash with West Ham could be the day. The Premier League champions host the Hammers on 3 May. After that, City play Leeds United on 7 May, Everton on 14 May, Chelsea on 20 May and Brentford on 28 May.